BBBSMB Launches Campus-Based Mentoring Program with Babson College, Olin College of Engineering and Boston Housing Authority

8 children from Gallivan Boulevard Development travel to Babson College to be mentored by college students on campus.

BOSTON, MA (October 29, 2015) - Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay announced the launch of a new campus-based program in partnership with Babson College, the Olin College of Engineering and the Boston Housing Authority. Twice a month during the school year, 18 children from the Gallivan Housing Development in Mattapan will travel to Babson College in Wellesley to be mentored by Babson and Olin college students.

The Babson/Olin/Gallivan Campus-Based Mentoring Program is a unique version of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay’s one-to-one youth mentoring program and will give children the opportunity to experience college life first-hand while providing college students the ability to make a difference in the life of a child while at school. The idea for the program was developed by Rich Greif, a Babson alumni (’90) and Vice President of Marketing and Community Relations at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay, and Lisa Thomas, ‎Director of the Office of Faith and Service at Babson College.

“This collaboration will give youth in the Gallivan Housing Development the opportunity to thrive in a relationship that will benefit them in all aspects of their lives” said Rich Greif. “We’re so thankful to for this opportunity and for this long-term partnership with both Babson, Olin and the Boston Housing Authority.”

“This program will help Babson to further create a conscious, connected community that pursues social justice and inspires our students to use the positive power of Entrepreneurial Thought and Action® to become entrepreneurial leaders who practice respect and empathy while seeking purpose through service,” said Lisa Thomas of Babson College.

“Our partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay and now Babson College and Olin College, helps to provide our public housing youth with the tools they need to succeed,” said BHA Administrator Bill McGonagle. “For some of these young people, this will be their first time on a college campus, a crucial step towards furthering their educational potential. We look forward to great outcomes and great stories about great youth throughout this collaboration.”

Children living in the Gallivan Housing Development typically live in single-parent and low-income households and are shown to benefit greatly from a one-to-one mentoring relationship, providing them with increased confidence and an ability to realize higher aspirations. A 2009 study by Harris Interactive of alumni Littles found that Big Brothers Big Sisters gives children a better foundation for life success by providing educational and life guidance. The study shows that 90% of Littles said that their relationship with their Big Brother or Big Sister helped them make better choices throughout their childhood. Children who have benefitted from having a Big Brother or Big Sister are 46% less likely to do drugs and 27% less likely to start drinking alcohol than their peers. Through this program, students build meaningful and lasting connections with adults in a positive and engaging environment that will impact their success both in and outside the school environment.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay is an innovative, energetic organization that is making a real difference in the lives of over 2,100 youth by providing them with an invested, caring adult mentor. With research and proven outcomes at its core, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Massachusetts Bay is working to ensure every child has the support from caring adults that they need for healthy development and success in life. The organization’s vision is to inspire, engage and transform communities in Massachusetts Bay by helping youth achieve their full potential, contributing to healthier families, better schools, brighter futures and stronger communities.

About Babson College

Babson College is the educator, convener, and thought leader for Entrepreneurship of All Kinds®. The top-ranked college for entrepreneurship education, Babson is a dynamic living and learning laboratory where students, faculty, and staff work together to address the real-world problems of business and society. We prepare the entrepreneurial leaders our world needs most: those with strong functional knowledge and the skills and vision to navigate change, accommodate ambiguity, surmount complexity, and motivate teams in a common purpose to make a difference in the world, and have an impact on organizations of all sizes and types. As we have for nearly a half-century, Babson continues to advance Entrepreneurial Thought and Action® as the most positive force on the planet for generating sustainable economic and social value.

About Boston Housing Authority

The Boston Housing Authority (BHA) provides affordable housing to more than 58,000 residents in and around the City of Boston. Residents are assisted through a combination of public housing and federal and state voucher subsidy programs that provide a wide variety of housing opportunities. As the largest public housing authority in New England, the BHA houses close to 9 percent of the city's residents. BHA’s mission is to provide stable, quality affordable housing for low and moderate income persons; to deliver these services with integrity and mutual accountability; and to create living environments which serve as catalysts for the transformation from dependency to economic self-sufficiency.

About Olin College of Engineering

Founded in 1997 and enrolling 350 students, Needham-based Olin College of Engineering functions as a laboratory for undergraduate engineering education. Olin’s multidisciplinary program, incorporating project-based learning, entrepreneurship, innovation and design into the engineering curriculum, has become a model for STEM institutions around the world pursuing curricular innovation.